


Better Off Alone

by dciphoenix



Category: Resident Evil (Movieverse)
Genre: Action/Adventure, Gen, Horror, Multi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-02-11
Updated: 2015-02-11
Packaged: 2018-03-11 21:11:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,241
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3333011
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dciphoenix/pseuds/dciphoenix
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The bridge between Resident Evil Apocalypse and Extinction. Alice's gradual learn of her new powers and just how unsafe she actually is around those she cares about.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Better off alone

Chapter One

"We should head back out to the crash site. Umbrella, if they're looking for us won't think of going back there. Right?" Jill Valentine's gentle voice washed over Alice's ears. Barely audible over the torrent of rain being hurled down from the heavens and the gunning engine. The weather was fitting, washing away all the filth of Umbrella's doing and not just re-birthing the Earth, but herself.

Alice looked down at herself, still shivering and still clutching at the lab coat around her torso for dear life. Ears, still full of the throbbing from her blood pounding its way round her body. "Here." She saw Jill, in the corner of her eye, rummaging around in a black back pack for something. Jill pulled out a pair of black pants and an equally as dark tank top, which Alice took and immediately slipped into. Finding slight difficulty in keeping her modesty and changing into something not soaking wet with rain water.

The raindrops fallen onto her barely clothed body had felt like spears of glass being rained down upon her, not water and ice. Each droplet had chilled her body where they had landed, before there were simply too many to count and a curtain of numbness then enveloped her entire being and not let go. Not even now...

"Babe. If you don't like 'em, we can find you some decent threads in town." LJ mused and nodded a hat free head in her direction.

A slight smile graced her mouth at his humour never ending. Even in dire circumstances. "And we can find you a hat." Alice mock glowered from under heavy eyelids at the man in the passenger seat. He was wearing a custom Umbrella operative uniform. Complete with Umbrella Corp logo on the chest plate. Even his hair was in a simple, subdued shape.

"Alice, babe. Please." LJ reached into the foot well of the SUV and brandished his iconic tailored hat. "I leave no man behind." He grinned before turning back and watching the road ahead.

Alice threw the sodden lab coat into her own foot well, not even looking as to where it landed.

Jill's eyes met her own as she looked aver the fellow female. What have they done to you? A sorrowful expression graced each one of her features, showing what Alice could only try and hide from view.

What have they DONE to you? It rang in her head as the realisation dawned she hadn't answered Jill and it was too late to answer her question, now.

The silence spoke words.

Because she simply didn't, couldn't know. Umbrella had already pumped her full of the T-virus. Who knows what they had done this time?! They have everything at their disposal. They are everything. So, surely they wouldn't have missed anything out to test out on their shiny, new lab rat, right?

"Good plan, Jill." Alice nodded. To herself, or to her saviours, it wasn't clear. "We need somewhere to hide out until we get our feet firmly back on the ground."

She took another look out the car window to witness herself and her Raccoon City surviving friends edge nearer and nearer away from Umbrella's clutches and into the seemingly never ending storm.


	2. Chapter 2

Better off alone

Chapter Two

Had she slept in the chemical bath that crazy, narcissistic, scientist wack-job had put her in? Thousands of questions ran rampant through Alice's mind. All needed answering, the images within her mind needed to be pieced back together before they splintered and faded into disrepair.

As exciting getaway journeys go, this one was a blur. A black and grey thundering blur. The high rises had disappeared. Replaced by trees and hills and a different sound of rain hitting objects, now more rhythmic as she car had been brought to a halt.

Weightlessness.

Numbness.

Peace.

It was just like before, her skin was even clammy as Alice near enough slapped herself in the face as she blinked away the sleep and momentary contentment she had slipped into in the back of the car. Someone must have carried into – wherever here was and bundled her up in the corner and sat her close enough to the fire that crackled to itself. Was that what had woken her? Her eyes adjusted to the orange glow emerging from the middle of the room. With the knuckle of her thumb, Alice wiped the remaining sleep and simultaneously, the need to rest again from her eyes and opened them wide before craning her neck to sweep her gaze around the small, musty cabin.

Huffing out a breath and pushing a soft dark blanket from herself, Alice stepped into the orange glow, pooled on the floor. Using oddly fairly steady legs for someone who had not, what, three or four hours ago had been broken out of a Umbrella facility after being their guinea pig to further their research.

The fire was welcoming, warmer than the blanket and seemed to highlight ever little thing the closer she got to it. A small window was snook into the wall where Alice had just ventured from and a wooden, seeming sturdy door was in the middle of the opposite wall across from the fire. Where had her friends gone? Those who had fought for their lived and then risked everything to break her out? Alice folded her legs underneath herself and noted both her hands and feet were bare. She moved her cold extremities towards the forgiving heat and exhaled slowly after squeezing her eyes shut and still seeing the red glow from behind her lids. Once all warmed up, Alice raised herself and strained for any sounds coming from the blank doors. She'd have to choose. Hopefully the one she grabbed the handle of would have something equally forgiving behind it.

Since her childhood, Jill Valentine has liked the rain. Liked the way it felt, smelt and changed the earth and made those who paid little attention to the day's forecast get caught out in angry downpours, drenching vegetable and mammal the same.

Her blue eyes took in the slowing rain out of the small, rectangular high iron rimmed window in the room. Beside her, lay Angela Ashford, her youthful features showing no torment or fear of what they had all narrowly escaped from. And next to Angie slept both guys that had joined her in her escape from Raccoon. Across from her was bags of their supplies, clothes and of course weapons.

It was just too damn risky of leaving them all out there, they might get cut off from the car by a swarm of the infected. Or less than likely, a group of lucky survivors such as themselves. So, with the rest of the gang's help, Jill had moved all their things into the small log cabin. Carlos had carried Alice's sleeping form into the main area by the fire they all had crowded around to wait for her to wake. But a few too many minutes went by and Alice had showed no signs to waking.

Jill had volunteered to stay watch and for them all to then go into the back room – none of them were entirely sure what the smaller adjacent room had been used for. They were compliant, not necessarily happy about leaving Alice alone. But they could all do with the rest after the day they've had. Not that the last two weeks were a cake walk, either. Though, sleeping on camping mats in abandoned, barricaded apartments would make anyone grouchy.

They all managed to fall asleep, with a weapon in arm's reach on the more comfortable sleeping bags they had picked up on along the way.

Angela had popped up behind them on the back seat and told Alice about the cabin, stating that her and her friend had often seen it on their camping trips with her best friend's family. Jill had come to the conclusion the other children's parents surely would have felt the need to give the young girl the chance to have an enjoyable childhood as her own father might have not been able to give her the one she might have deep down, hoped for, to do silly childish things like camping in the outskirts of Raccoon Forest. She had revealed the location before being shushed my Jill, herself. Perhaps that was why she had stayed watch with Angie, rather then where she should have been, in the room where they left Alice. Anyway, it wasn't like Alice was miles away and she could more then look after herself.

She wouldn't have liked it if she had been pestered after near enough crawling through a wreaked city and experimented on in ways that could make you loose your mind in fear of what they could have done. That's why she hadn't bombarded Alice with more questions as to what happened. As though something inside of her secretly knew, that even if she did, Alice wouldn't have the slightest idea.

Eventually having a moments rest without the constant possibility of getting torn apart and eaten alive then preparing to infiltrate one of Umbrella's own high security labs – though she couldn't take the credit for that one. Carlos had more or less planned everything after Jill had announced they were going to get her back. It was met with unity from them all though, Carlos had been to the to step up and take lead. She didn't mind that – the thought of going through of all the things that Alice had gone through in, perhaps an alternate reality or something had finally crept up on her. It was the stuff of nightmares, say the least. Would her old friends help her if she called on them? Would the old S.T.A.R.S. get their asses into gear and come give her a hand? She wasn't sure of anything any more and it wasn't good for her to think about all the maybes, ifs and buts if they hadn't gotten out of there when they all did.

The brown door in front of her swung open, revealing a little less damp woman. At least they hadn't taken that away from her... Alice's short, mousy hair, was the only indicator she'd had been through a downpour. A tired expression and smile graced her features as Jill looked her over, at least she didn't look as cold as she once did in the back of the getaway car.

Jill moved Angela off her arm, careful not to wake her and left her group of sleeping friends. Moving around Alice to speak in private, she waited until Alice had closed the door behind her to start speaking.

"We, they wanted to stay with you. But, I would have thought you'd like to have a bit of space for you to get your feet firmly on the ground first." Jill looked her over. Able to, now see more of her non existent wounds and scars. "You remember anything else?" She continued.

Alice met her eyes once more with the feeling of confusion and hatred. Though, not at the fellow Raccoon City disaster in front of her.

"Sorry, if you still don't want to talk about it, that's fine." Like she didn't...

"No, it's fine. I wish I could answer you, honest. But I still don't know a thing." Alice gave a slight shake of head and watched Jill as she combed her fingers though her dark fringed hair. It looked as drenched as hers, so she couldn't have been out for long.

Jill returned the earlier smile and tilted her head back slightly. "Why don't you get some shut-eye in the back? I don't mind keeping watch, still. Just make sure you hold Angie. I don't want her getting woken by a nightmare."

Alice saw the faint traces of empathy grace her companion's face. Sure, she'd shown emotion when she'd lost people her friend to Nemesis. But this difference was like a new side to her. But, it felt truly natural, almost as if this would be what she was normally like when doing something other then saving the world.


	3. Chapter 3

Better off alone

The final chapter

Alice opens her eyes to the sound of screaming from outside, quickly running out into the open – she sees a massive bear with dripping fangs, a coat of bloodied fur and blue cloudy eyes.

The eyes are what give it away.

It's a zombie. Corrupted by the virus. By the Umbrella fucking corporation.

The bear roars at its attacker. The head bowed down and the ears are pinned back, its eyes widening to the point where all you could see within the fur trimmed sockets were the red pupils within in a web of blue veins. Indicating the infection had reached full penetration of the individual's body. Or in his case, the animal.

Alice side steps the bear's attack and lands in a low crouch with her weight resting on her left leg, as it bends underneath herself. Alice takes aim, squeezing one eye closed before releasing three shots into the bear.

Each one were lost in the dense, thick over fur as he howled in annoyance at his meal not giving up its life so easily. The bear roared again, the jaws, the fangs catching Alice's eye as she holstered her weapons in a final, death defying bid to bring the undead bear down. Alice kicked off from the ground before gaining speed close to immediately in aid of her new found powers as a side effect from the T-virus fusing together with her DNA in a strange anomaly.

The bear drew back, angrier than ever and retracted its stumpy neck. All before nearly taking a nose dive into ground turf as it scampered up to her, clawing its way thought the sodden turf.

The enemy had the same plan as her.

Though, most probably with a different outcome.

The grass was turned up and tossed backwards from the sheer velocity of her movements as she grew nearer and the bear got bigger. Alice twisted in mid-air as she was a foot away from the animal, inhaling deeply and managing to slide in-between the bear's front legs and reach the under belly of the beast.

Quickly taking the blade at her hip in one smooth movement, she stabbed it, roughly deep within the chest, narrowly passing each rib. Then, judging by the harrowing loud roar of pain the bear then made, she'd plunged her blade right into the bear's heart.

The legs of the monster began to shake as she watched it try to stay upright. Taking the blade out of the now dying beast, Alice moved her head out of the way to avoid the sudden explosion of blood that erupted from the beast and flooded the grass as she took out the now sticky blade. Rolling out through the bear's back legs in time to see the bear fall forwards, its front legs giving way first, then the back to the sheer weight of itself.

It fell face down on the blood stained grass and then moved no more.

Alice let out a shaky breath, wiping her arm against her brow to move her blood and grime matted hair off her face before slotting back the six inch knife back into place. Taking in the dead bear in front of her and the patch of once clean unoccupied grass with tall fur trees surrounding it, Alice tracked back the way she came.

Noting each bear paw print and bullet hole in the trees where she had aimed and misfired all the while running backwards away from the enraged bear. Alice had managed a few shots into the bear's hide, but they seemed to go by unnoticed just like the ones she had performed before killing it. But she had finally managed to kill it. She HAD killed it.

Alice eventually emerged from the outer Raccoon Forest woodland and found the cave and black Umbrella Corporation car they had used for their getaway. Alice climbed in, opening the door and scribbling down a quick note of safety from the bear with a message of thanks and apology. Alice exhales deeply, looking into the semi distorted reflection of herself in the wind shield. I barely recognise myself, how can I recognise friend or foe and protect people when I can't even understand what I am... Then ending the note with a heartfelt 'goodbye'. Alice got back out of the car, careful to close the door quietly enough so she could get a head start away from the rest of the survivors.

L.J. The funny son of a bitch who had a witty come back in times of great strain, when getting jumped by infected, trying to kill infected or when just trying to break up the tense atmosphere. Jill had given him banter back, which only seemed to fuel the young man's need to comment on every little thing and turn it into some kind of joke.

Jill. How they had become close as time passed. First meeting in the church and a group of lickers hell bent of killing each one of them before she had intervened. She was good. Alice was just better. How young Angela had taken to her as a Mothering figure. Alice would be able to protect her better than her. Having an infected person protect survivors from rabid infected just didn't seem right. With Carlos, they'd had a much better chance at finding a safe area and more survivors with him. She had respect for Jill. She's tough but not afraid to let her emotions show and she feels respect back.

Carlos. An umbrella operative gone rogue. You've gotta love the similarities. He'd protected them all and got infected in the process. Loosing both his team mates from Umbrella and then ultimately turning against them all to protect and deliver the little girl to her father. She respects Carlos too. But then there's that certain something about him that makes her skin so cold on the outside and red hot on the in. But of course she told herself it was only the uneasy feel that remains after battling through hundreds of undead. You feel as if you're being watched.

Breaking out of her sorrowful thoughts, Alice looks around for a second to see if there were any undead limping their way towards her.

With a quick scan of the area, it proved to be clear of both friend and foe.

Taking her backpack out of the boot, Alice checked for all the necessary kit she needed on her travels. Leaving the area, Alice felt the urge to take one last look behind her and bid farewell to the cave where her new friends would be hiding. But in a heart squeezing effort, she turned away and headed for the open road. To hopefully find new survivors, right then on their way to wherever they were headed in their own idea of survival and leave them to save more. More than certain she couldn't allow herself to spend a moment in apprehension as to what could happen to her new friends, Alice shook her head. Ridding herself of invisible tears and walked into the opposite area of woodland.

Then kept on walking.

This seemed like a good plan. It's better than none. She's better off alone.


End file.
